The Challenges of These Hyperpartisan Times: What Next Year May Bring
Wade Henderson
Commentary
2012 is a presidential election year. As we do every four years, we will take stock of the president’s record on civil and human rights. At the same time, we in the civil and human rights community will take stock of our many accomplishments over the last three years—and recommit ourselves to pushing forward on those priorities that we still need to drive over the finish line.
It’s been a very interesting ride. The first two years of Barack Obama’s presidency were incredibly successful, with the passage of many civil and human rights bills, such as the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 and an expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, along with the confirmation of two women to the U.S. Supreme Court (Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan).
And though the satisfaction we felt those first two years has been replaced by frequent frustrations with the cold, hard reality of a Congress that will likely go down in history as one of the most divisive and unproductive in decades, we know that the work that we do to “build an America that’s as good as its ideals” is a marathon, not a sprint. Indeed, some years are just harder than others.
There were, of course, some important achievements. In January, we organized Americans for Constitutional Citizenship, a truly amazing coalition of more than 80 national organizations to fight efforts at the state and federal level to undermine the Constitution’s guarantee of citizenship for all persons born in the United States. We were so successful at making proposals to eviscerate the 14th Amendment politically radioactive that we didn’t actually have to fight any bills in Congress or in state legislatures. This is truly a testament to the benefits of getting out in front of an issue, in a united, creative, focused and tough way.
We also were successful in encouraging Attorney General Eric Holder to lead an effort to have the Fair Sentencing Act, which reduced the sentencing disparity between crack and powder forms of cocaine and eliminated mandatory minimum sentences for simple possession, applied retroactively. And we succeeded in convincing the U.S. Sentencing Commission to adopt that position as its policy.
But overwhelmingly, 2011 was marked by hyperpartisan gridlock in Congress, which eliminated most opportunities to advance important civil and human rights legislation. It also stymied the routine business of confirming nominees to the judicial and executive branches, even for highly qualified appointees across the ideological spectrum. Indeed, while we were successful in securing the confirmation of exceptional nominees like Edward Chen to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, his confirmation really was the exception that proved the rule for judicial nominations in the 112th Congress.
The challenge for us going forward is to operate effectively in this new hyperpartisan environment without becoming dispirited or accepting it as the “new normal,” as so many people have. An election year is an opportunity to educate voters about the issues, the options, the choices they can make, and the candidates who are most likely to deliver the government they desire. We cannot concede the debate on the government’s role in advancing civil and human rights to our policy opponents, particularly those who believe that the best government is one so small that you can “drown it in a bathtub.”
We know that the work of the civil and human rights movement is always evolving and never quite finished. We must continue the work of explaining why the vision we have for a more equitable, just America is in the best interests of everyone – and how federal legislation and policy can play a role in creating that America.
As important as that kind of education is, it will be for naught if those with the knowledge and the desire to express their will are denied the ability to do so. Therefore, I believe the most important issue we must address in 2012 is voter suppression. Voting is the language of democracy. But as long as we have existed as a nation, there have been efforts to suppress the will of the people by denying some the right to vote. The racial dimension of voter suppression has its roots in slavery, and has long been a stain on our democracy.
Today’s efforts to disenfranchising voters in several states are more subtle, more sophisticated, and intended to affect a wider swath of the population than the African-American community. They are no less pernicious than when poll taxes and literacy tests were the order of the day. Voter ID requirements; shortened early voting periods; limits on poll worker assistance; proof of citizenship requirements; restrictions on same day and third-party registration; and felon disenfranchisement are all part of a coordinated campaign of voter suppression.
Our response must be equally coordinated and sophisticated. We must be out in force in our communities next year to prepare every single eligible voter to meet the new state requirements so that they can vote. We must make sure that voter access campaigns, election protection work, and affiliated legal strategies all function in concert to protect the ability of every single American to vote. And we must work to expand the franchise to more Americans by passing legislation such as the Democracy Restoration Act, which would restore the right to vote in federal elections to millions of Americans with felony convictions who have completed their sentences.
Another critical issue for the civil and human rights community is education reform. We have a huge stake in the effort to reform the nation’s education system because the current system is failing too many children—low-income and minority students, English language learners, and students with disabilities.
We started 2011 with high hopes that reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) might be the one major piece of legislation that Congress would address. And while there was movement, it was not entirely in the direction that we wanted. At the federal level, policymakers put forth legislative proposals and executive actions that represent a disturbing move toward giving states and school district administrators more money and more flexibility while essentially letting them off the hook for educating the very students that they have never done a good job of educating.
As Congress moves forward with ESEA reauthorization, it will be imperative that the civil and human rights community make the case that the improvements we’ve seen to date have come because of—and not in spite of—federal intervention. Now is not the time to turn the clock back on the federal government’s role in ensuring all children have access to high-quality education. We have an opportunity to fulfill the promise of a high-quality public education for every single child in the United States.
And of course, we must deal with the effect our sluggish economic recovery is having on our ability to create jobs. For the last three years, the conversation about economic security in America has centered on esoteric Washington wonkery about our budget deficit and Keynesian economics. All Americans want government to help ensure that we all have access to good paying jobs. That’s the message that we have to communicate next year, and every year thereafter.
I could go on because we all know the list is long. We still need comprehensive immigration reform, an overhaul of our racially discriminatory criminal justice system, affordable housing, and so many other essential policies and reforms.
But voting rights, education, and economic security are critical to a functioning democracy. And, not surprisingly, they have always been the three anchors of the civil and human rights movement. Our forebears understood the power of the ballot box, the importance of an educated electorate, and the fact that a good job that pays a living wage is critical to the “pursuit of happiness.”
We have an opportunity to make significant progress on these issues—the kind of progress that could be as transformative as the civil and human rights legislation of the 1960s. We need only build the public—and the political—will to do so.
Wade Henderson is the president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and The Leadership Conference Education Fund.
